Early diagnosis of progressive systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) from a panoramic view: report of three cases.

Systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) is a multisystem disease involving the skin, lungs, heart, kidneys and gastrointestinal tract. It is probably owing to a disorder of the immune system. It may also have some oral manifestations, including limited ability to open the mouth, widening of the periodontal ligament (PDL) space and mandibular bone resorption. We report here on three asymptomatic cases that were referred to our oral and maxillofacial radiology centre for another reason, and in which we suspected scleroderma based on the widening of the PDL in the panoramic view. The early diagnosis was finally confirmed by pathological findings.